First wrestling gold medal in Turkmen sport history
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Turkmen wrestler Alp Arslan Begenjov made history by becoming the first-ever champion at the U-20 World Championship in freestyle wrestling. This remarkable achievement occurred during the tournament in Pontevedra, Spain.
Begenjov has shown outstanding performance throughout the season. At the start of the year, he secured a bronze medal at the International Junior Tournament of Champions in Antalya, Turkey, followed by another bronze at the U-23 Asian Championship in Amman, Jordan. In July, he claimed gold at the Asian Championship for athletes under 20 in Si Racha, Thailand. Now, his most significant accomplishment has come with the gold medal at the U-20 World Championship.
Competing in the 79 kg weight category, where 28 athletes vied for the title, Alp Arslan dominated every stage of the competition. In the qualification round, he defeated Mahdi Yousefihajivar (Iran) 10-0, followed by a 10-0 victory over Oleksandr Mamrosh (Ukraine) in the 1/8 finals. He continued his dominance with a 10-0 win over Dmitry Lukashchuk (Belarus) in the quarterfinals, an 11-0triumph against Amit Amit (India) in the semifinals, and a solid 5-0 victory over American Zachary D. Ryder in the final.
Bronze medals in this weight category were awarded to Mahdi Yousefihajivar (Iran) and Leandro Araujo (Brazil).
